


so just hold quick, you’re fading right in the cold trick of the light

by sieccha



Category: Dragalia Lost (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death, Drabble, F/M, Sad Ending, Unresolved Sexual Tension, of sorts, there is only angst there is only suffering on this ship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:00:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24557326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sieccha/pseuds/sieccha
Summary: After the events of his adventurer story, Audric visits Cassandra before returning to the halidom.
Relationships: Audric/Cassandra (Dragalia Lost)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 14





	so just hold quick, you’re fading right in the cold trick of the light

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Cassandra is Tired](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21027953) by [yokiedokie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yokiedokie/pseuds/yokiedokie). 



> i wrote this last year i think i was inspired by [Zey's cassandric fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21027953). do check it out if you haven't read it!

Everything is the same in this timeline.

No, nothing is the same.

His son isn't possessed by Morsayati in this timeline.

His own incarnation is dead.

And Cassandra… Cassandra is alive.

Audric stands before a familiar cottage in the woods in silence, watching the smoke bubbling from the chimney, smelling the familiar scent of a dish he loved, and hearing the quiet humming of a woman very precious to him. His hand rises to rap against the wooden door of the cottage but falters at the last second. In a second, fear seizes him. His heartbeat quickens, his breaths shorten, and his hand trembles. He squeezes his eyes shut and curls his hands into fists. He sees the flames of another cottage in the woods, the blood of another woman he loved behind his eyelids. A strangled sob escapes his throat.

"How long are you going to stand there, Aurelius?"

His eyes fly open at the voice. She's alive. She's _alive_.

"Cass-- I--" is all he manages to say before she takes his hand in hers and leads him into her living room. He stumbles across the doorframe, his legs still unsteady from the flood of memories. Audric decides to keep his gaze pointedly on Cassandra's back. He's scared that if he looks away he'll find her in a corner of her home, bloodied and growing colder by the second, clutching onto a grimoire that wouldn't save her.

She sets him down on the couch, hands pressing down on his shoulders. No words are spoken but he understands. She wants him to wait here. He will comply. He can do little else anyway. He watches her whirl away, her black hair leaving inky trails in her wake. She disappears into the kitchen, a soft hum on her lips. _Keep humming_. He pleads her silently.

She returns again, holding another teacup in her hand and sets it down on the table in front of him. He stares at the golden brown surface of the tea, his reflection warping from the steam wafting in his face. He doesn't recognise the person glaring back at him.

A teaspoon clinks against the teacup, drawing his gaze away from his reflection. "What brings you here, Aur-"

"Audric," he cuts in quickly, the name he speaks equal parts familiar and foreign to him. He watches Cassandra's eyes narrow a little. She pauses for a moment and unquestioningly repeats the name of a fool king.

"I've never visited you out here outside of business. I-," he pauses before his voice cracks, still staring at the tea. He wrings his hands tightly. He wants to hold her and make sure she is real, against his better judgement. He will have to settle for the fleeting warmth her hand left on his earlier. "... I wanted to rectify this."

Cassandra hums in response, taking a sip of her tea. "Do you remember when we were little, Audric?" She says finally, setting the cup down on the table. "Your father used to go on those diplomatic missions and he would take you with him?"

"I… Yes," he replies hesitantly and thinks of a little dark-haired girl a few years older than him and leagues smarter than him.

She chuckles a little, a faraway look in her eyes. She swallows audibly, then speaks again, “So, tell me about your journey overseas, like you used to.”

There is a knowing glint in her eye, one that fills him with a sickening and unwanted sense of nostalgia. He frowns, but he begins his story anyway. She is rapt with attention, despite the lazy facade she is wont to give. She never interrupts him, so his tale flows from his mouth like a brook, bubbling with emotion and seemingly never-ending. When he finishes, her lips are pursed and there’s another look he knows very well. The pit of his stomach drops, he never told her what happened to her, glossed over the deaths of both her and Notte, and also his massacre of those he rescued, but she _knows_. He knows there’s no fooling her. And she will find out sooner than later.

He hopes she never finds out.

When she finally speaks, he feels himself bracing for the piercing question, but it never came. “Stay the night, Audric. It’s getting late.”

He exhales a breath he did not know he was holding and stands. “You’ve been a wonderful host, Cassandra, but--”

“No buts. You shouldn’t let Euden see you like this.”

His gaze flicks to the cold tea surface again, and sees the same stranger staring back at him. “I’m fine.”

“There you go again. I always wondered why they call you the _Sage King_ when you can be as stubborn as a mule.”

He flinches at the title he renounced like a fresh wound from a whip. The words cut deep into his bones. “I’m not--”

Cassandra rises to full height as well and meets his gaze stonily. “When will you let me take care of you?”

“Stop,” he commands. “I am not worthy--”

“You will _not_ use that tone on me. You are no king here, Audric. The Aurelius of this world is no more. He is dust in the wind and dirt in the earth. And it is--” her voice breaks and a sob escapes her lips. “It is my fault.”

“Cass?” He pauses and feels the wind leave his lungs. His hand reaches for her but stops a hair’s breadth from her face and moves to rest on her shoulder instead. “You couldn’t be blaming _yourself_ for what happened, could you?”

“Aur-” she stops herself. “ _Audric_ , if I was there in the binding ruins that day--”

“No,” he says sharply. “You cannot blame yourself for what has happened. No matter what happens on that day, Morsayati will get what he wants. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen it many, _many_ times.”

She remains silent. Haltingly, he lets his fingers brush stray strands of her hair away from her face. He thinks he hears her breath hitch when he brushes against her cheek.

"I can't do this," she whispers, pulling his hand away from her face. She squeezes his hand one last time before she lets go. He withdraws his hand as if he had been stung. There is an inexplicable ache in his heart. The pain only grows when he sees the tear streaks on Cassandra's face.

"I'm sorry, Cass… Cassandra. I overstepped," he backs away. He flexes his hands uncomfortably before continuing, "Don't blame yourself for what happened to the old king. He-- He wouldn't have wanted you to."

He takes one last look at her and it takes his whole being not to rush to her when she falls to her knees. Red flashes behind his eyes again and he sees her paler than she ever was, weaker than he had ever known her. He squeezes his eyes shut.

She was the wrong Cassandra.

“I can’t help you, Aurelius,” She whispers. He opens his eyes to find her wearing an expression he has come to be familiar with for decades, one she only wears when she thinks he isn’t looking. She looks weary when she speaks again, “As long as you see _her_ instead of me, I beg you, do not return.”

Audric doesn't look back when he closes the door behind him.

**Author's Note:**

> i would have loved to continue this but i don't remember _anything_ i planned for this so this is it. this is all you and i get because i would've loved to see what happened next but the problem is i'm the writer.


End file.
